Current Courses - Spring 2019

SOC 101  Sociology of Gender  credit: 3 Hours.

An exploration of current questions of gender and their applications to students today. The course will focus primarily on the United States emphasizing individual, interactional, and institutional aspects of the social world. Topics for study include sociological research on femininities, masculinities, gendered bodies, socialization, work, family, politics, sport, and sexualities.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria for:
Social & Beh Sci - Soc Sci

Instructor: TBA

Meets: Online

SOC 160  Global Inequality and Social Change  credit: 3 Hours

Introduces sociological concepts of poverty, inequality, and social change within a global context. Themes explored include basic food security, poverty and hunger; population and resource distribution; foreign aid and development institutions; and social policies and movements for change. Course approach is historical and transnational, and typically includes case studies from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the United States.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria in Spring 2019 for:
Cultural Studies - Non-West
Social & Beh Sci - Soc Sci

Instructor: TBA

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday 11:00 - 12:20

SOC 162  Intro to Intl Health Policy  credit: 3 Hours.

Introduces students to international health policy. Students will learn about data sources, basic analytical techniques, and theoretical frameworks for understanding international health policy. From a sociological perspective, students will explore why health issues are essential components to discussion of globalization, immigration, and migration. Students also will learn how health policy and foreign policy decisions in the developed world influence health policy and health care delivery in the developing world.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria for:
Social & Beh Sci - Soc Sci
Cultural Studies – Western

Instructor: Professor Jane VanHeuvelen

Meets: Monday, Wednesday, Friday  11:00am - 11:50am

SOC 163  Social Problems  credit: 3 Hours.

A study of social problems in the United States necessarily entails a discussion of global issues. To that end, this course will examine many contemporary social issues such as crime, war and terrorism, the environment, inequality, poverty, discrimination, the economic recession, and others, through a global framework. Many of the topics we will cover could motivate an entire semester's study in their own right; indeed, some scholars devote their entire careers to but one of these topics. However, this breadth allows us to think broadly about the issues that are identified as social problems and the ways in which individuals and groups attempt to resolve those problems; both processes are revealing about the time and society in which we live. One of the main objectives of this class is to learn about how sociologists examine social problems through analysis and research. Alongside that process, you will improve your critical thinking skills and become a better/more informed consumer of information.

Instructor: Professor Ilana Akresh

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  8:00am - 9:20am

SOC 196  Whiteness in America  Credit:

More information coming soon.

Instructor: Professor Monica McDermott

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  9:30am - 10:50am

SOC 200  Introduction to Sociological Theory  credit: 3 Hours.

This course is an introduction to the foundations of sociological theory. Topics may include the problem of social order and the nature of social conflict; capitalism and bureaucracy; the relationship between social structure and politics; and the evolution of modern societies. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing.

Instructor: Professor Monica McDermott

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  12:30pm - 1:50pm

SOC 225  Race and Ethnicity  credit: 3 Hours.

Sociological and social-psychological analysis of minority groups; illustrative material drawn from representative racial, ethnic, and status groups.

Prerequisite: SOC 100, SOC 101, OR SOC 163.

Instructor: Professor Ghassan Moussawi

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  2:00pm - 3:20pm

SOC 274  Health, Illness and Society  credit: 3 Hours.

What do you do when you get sick? Where do you go? Who provides your medical care? In this course we will discuss why the answers to these basic questions are actually quite complex. This course is designed to introduce students to medical sociology and will examine issues surrounding health, illness and healing from a sociological perspective. Throughout the course we will cover numerous topics including: the social construction of health and illness, healthcare providers, healthcare systems - including contemporary debates regarding healthcare reform - and the social determinants of health inequalities. Additionally, this course offers an introduction to sociological theories and concepts that may be particularly useful for those interested in pursuing medical school or any career in a health-related field.

Instructor: Professor Jane VanHeuvelen

Meets: Monday, Wednesday  2:00pm - 2:50pm  and  Friday Online

SOC 275  Criminology  credit: 3 Hours.

Nature and extent of crime; past and present theories of crime causation; criminal behavior in the United States and abroad, and its relation to personal, structural and cultural conditions; the nature of the criminal justice system and the influences of the exercise of discretion among actors in the criminal justice system. 

Prerequisite: One of the following: SOC 100, SOC 101, SOC 163 or equivalent.

Instructor: TBA

Meets: Online  2nd 8 weeks

SOC 350  Technology and Society  credit: 3 Hours.

Examines the social and cultural origins of modern technology and technological innovation; the effects of technology and its change on society. Topics include the impact of technology on beliefs and values, accommodation and resistance to change, and technology and the Third World.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria for:
Social & Beh Sci - Soc Sci

Instructor: Professor Daniel Steward

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  12:30pm - 1:50pm

SOC 375  Criminal Justice System  credit: 3 Hours.

Exploration of the actors, institutions, and processes that make up the criminal justice system. We review sociological and other social scientific research on topics including the police, prosecutors, the courtroom work-group, forensic evidence, juries, sentencing, and the impact of mass incarceration. Grades are based on exams, research exercises, and ethnographic observations of criminal courtrooms. 

Prerequisite: SOC 275 is recommended.

Instructor: Professor Anna Marshall

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  11:00am - 12:20pm

SOC 378  Sociology of Law  credit: 3 Hours.

Examination of law and legal institutions sociologically. We begin with an introduction to theoretical perspectives on the problem of order, illustrated by juxtaposing formal law with other means of achieving order. Next, we consider law and legal systems in action, including relations between law and the economy, stratification, culture, ideology and social change. Finally, we investigate the relationship between law's aims and principles, and law's real-world implementation.

Instructor: TBA

Meets: Monday, Wednesday, Friday  12:00pm - 12:50pm

SOC 396  Bigots and Snowflakes: Living in a World Where Everyone Else is Wrong or Free Speech, Viewpoint Diversity, and Higher Education  credit: 3 Hours.

In this class, we will directly address questions surrounding viewpoint diversity. The course is built on two foundational premises. The first is that there is a lack of viewpoint diversity in higher education; recent survey data confirm this trend. The second assertion is that this lack of diversity damages the mission of higher education. Inherent in the definition of viewpoint diversity is the principle that there is a spectrum of perspectives ranging, politically speaking, from staunchly conservative on one end to radically progressive on the other – and that the voicing of perspectives falling along that spectrum without social penalty is integral to a healthy society.

Instructor: Professor Ilana Akresh

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  9:30am - 10:50am

SOC 396  Social Network Analysis  3 Hours.

This course will introduce theories of social networks (how they form, and how they influence thoughts, feelings, and behaviors), while also providing hands-on experience with some powerful tools and methods for analyzing networks on various scales, ranging from small groups to communities to populations. We will explore how the field emerged and how the first analytic tools were developed, and look closely at some of the landmark studies since then that have applied social network analysis to understanding (for example) the evolution of cooperation, the dynamics of social capital, and the formation of social identity. We will also review case studies where an appreciation of social network dynamics has informed policy innovations public health and other domains, with particular attention on how positive patterns of social support and community engagement are being cultivated to promote socio-emotional resilience throughout the lifecourse.

Instructor: Dr. David Hopping

Meets: Monday, Wednesday, Friday  10:00am - 10:50am

SOC 447  Environmental Sociology  credit: 3 or 4 Hours

Examination of historical and modern consequences of environmental alteration and pollution and resource limitations on human populations in the context of various social change theories. Explores the environmental movement, population explosion, the "limits to growth debate," and the impacts of environmental change on food production, land, and water quality.

3 undergraduate hours. 3 or 4 graduate hours. Prerequisite: SOC 380 or equivalent; and one of the following: SOC 100, SOC 101, SOC 163, RSOC 110 or equivalent, or consent of instructor.

Instructor: Professor Zsuzsa Gille

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  2:00pm - 3:15pm

Same as: ENVS 447 and RSOC 110

SOC 450  Senior Capstone Seminar  credit: 3 Hours.

Over the course of the semester, students will conceive and execute an original sociological research project, using their knowledge of the sociological literature developed in substantive courses and their skills in data collection and analysis developed in methods courses. In parallel, students will explore professional opportunities in sociology and engage in professional development activities, including exploring opportunities for graduate education and learning skills in job search, and resume, c.v., personal statement and cover letter development. 

3 undergraduate hours. No graduate credit. Prerequisite: One of the following: SOC 100, SOC 101 or SOC 163; and SOC 380. For Sociology majors only.

Instructor: Professor Ruby Mendenhall

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  3:30pm - 4:50pm

SOC 470  Social Movements  credit: 2 to 4 Hours.

Origins and development of groups in promoting and resisting change, resource mobilization, strategies and tactics, individual and social consequences. 3 undergraduate hours. 2 or 4 graduate hours. 

Prerequisite: One of the following: SOC 100, SOC 101, SOC 163, or six hours of anthropology, social geography, political science, or sociology.

Instructor: Professor Asef Bayat

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  9:30am - 10:50am

SOC 479  Law and Society  credit: 3 or 4 Hours.

Examination of the social and political organization of the legal system, including the development of disputes, the role of gatekeepers to the legal system, and the political significance of litigation. Examines the role of law in sustaining and dismantling structural forms of inequality, as well as the relationship between law and social change. 

3 undergraduate hours. 4 graduate hours. Credit is not given for both SOC 477 and SOC 479. Prerequisite: One of the following: SOC 100, SOC 101, SOC 163, or six hours of anthropology, social geography, political science, or sociology.

Instructor: Professor Anna Marshall

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  3:30pm - 4:50pm

SOC 488  Demographic Analysis  credit: 3 or 4 Hours.

Focuses upon initial and intermediate techniques for the assessment of demographic data including quality assessment procedures, calculating core demographic metrics, gaining familiarity with approaches to population projection and estimation, and mastering risk assessment techniques linked to single and multi-decrement life tables. 3 undergraduate hours. 4 graduate hours. Prerequisite: SOC 270.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria for:
Quantitative Reasoning II

Instructor: Professor Cynthia Buckley

Meets: Monday, Wednesday, Friday  11:00am - 11:50am

SOC 496  Science, Technology, and Society Studies  credit: 3 Hours.

Provides students with a grounding in the field of science, technology, and society studies (STS). Using classic and contemporary texts, we map this interdisciplinary field. Topics to be covered may include, but are not limited to, historical investigations of science and technology, technological determinism, social constructionism, laboratory and fieldwork studies, intellectual property regimes, politics and technical knowledge, philosophy of science, scientific/technological innovation and diffusion, and science and technology in popular culture.

Instructor: Professor Daniel Steward

Meets: Tuesday, Thursday  8:00am - 9:20am

SOC 500  Classical Sociological Theory  credit: 2 Hours.

Analysis of major classical sociological theorists of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, stressing the social, historical, and philosophic foundations of sociological theory; primary emphasis on Marx, Durkheim, and Weber.

Instructor: Professor Kevin Leicht

Meets: Tuesday  3:30pm - 6:20pm

SOC 510  Professionalization Seminar  credit: 2 Hours.

Introduction to the graduate program in Sociology and to graduate study in the discipline of Sociology. Approved for S/U grading only. May be repeated in separate terms to a maximum of 4 hours. Prerequisite: Graduate standing in Sociology and consent of the Director of Graduate Studies.

Instructor: Professor Asef Bayat

Meets: Tuesday  12:30pm - 1:20pm

SOC 586  Adv Social Statistics I  credit: 4 Hours.

Examines social science applications of the general linear model and its extensions; topics include: model specification; ordinary and generalized least squares; multicollinearity; selection of predictors; interaction of variables and non-linear regression; panel and time-series data; measurement error; path analysis; recursive and non-recursive structural equation models. Applies statistical computing packages (e.g., SPSS) to social science data. Credit is not given for both SOC 586 and PSYC 406. Prerequisite: SOC 485 or equivalent.

Instructor: Professor Tim Liao

Meets: Monday  3:30pm - 6:50pm

SOC 596  Social Stratification  credit: 4 Hours.

This course provides a broad introduction to the topic of social inequality. We will engage with classical and contemporary theories of inequality, as well as empirical research on the shape, causes, and consequences of inequality. More broadly, we will develop a sociological understanding to the question, “Who gets what, and why?”

Instructor: Professor Tom VanHeuvlen

Meets: Thursday  5:00pm - 7:50pm

SOC 596  Integrating Qualitative and Quantitative Methods  credit: 4 Hours.

This course seeks to examine the possibilities and problems associated with the integration of qualitative and qualitative methodologies.  In particular, it examines the importance of mixed methodological approaches for comparative research.  The seminar seeks to provide participants with a “hands on” approach to data collection, evaluation, and analysis.  Through individual and group assignments, we will gain experience with specific methodological approaches and ethical concerns, including familiarity with the basic epistemological challenges associated with qualitative and quantitative approaches, central issues in probability and non-probability sampling/case selection, basic survey and interview protocol construction, observational techniques, focus groups, in-depth interviews, and content analysis. Depending on interest, basic GIS and or network analysis has been included in past offerings. The final project is a formal mixed method grant proposal.  This project enables participants to explore the possibilities offered by mixed methods studies and can provide the basis for a portfolio writing sample, a future fellowship application, or even the beginnings of your dissertation prospectus.

 Instructor: Professor Cynthia Buckley

Meets: Wednesday  3:30pm - 6:20pm